ON THE VANGUARD

STRONGHOLDS BROKEN DOWN
“For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ."
II Corinthians 10:3-5

When I was younger I remember seeing a movie in church concerning spiritual warfare that has never left my memory. As the battle in the physical played out in the choices being made by the lead character, so also the movie gave an inside look at the battle in the spiritual. Although the main character was unable to see the angels and demons that fought over his life, the fact was that the war was real. In the end, because of the prayers prayed by his friends and family, his life was saved. And although this sounds like a cute little story, the fact is this is happening at every minute concerning our lives. The war is real, and the enemy wants nothing more than to destroy us. So for today’s devotional, I felt I was to continue on with the topic of prayer again. This time around, however, I felt that I was to break down the passage of II Corinthians 10:3-4 in order to give a better understanding of just what we as believers in Christ will find ourselves coming in contact with in the spirit realm.
Having watched my share of war movies growing up, it appears the allied forces always knew a little something about the enemy. Either they knew where the base was, or what type weapons they were fighting with, or even the terrain the enemy would hide in. But I wonder if we are as wise to our enemy. It seems that too many Christians are walking around oblivious to that fact that they are walking straight into the war zone without any knowledge of the enemy or his tactics. And although it is not my desire to give any glory to the enemy, I do have to admit that he seems to have studied us and knows our points of weakness that can be used for our demise. Therefore, we must turn the tables and realize who we are fighting and the weapons that we have in hand. It is for this reason that Paul writes in II Corinthians 10:3 that we do not fight in the flesh. Our military expedition or call of duty is strictly in the spirit realms. It would do well to also point out at this point that there should be no soldiers in reserves. Each soldier has been called up to stand on the frontline, the vanguard of his or her own lives, and still be joined together with the army of God to war over the lives of others.
So then, we fight with weapons that are not physical, but spiritual. It is in our arms and weapons of warfare that victory will be found. In II Corinthians 10:4 it reads, “The weapons we fight with…” This word ‘fight’ is the Greek word STRATEIA, found only twice in the New Testament. The meaning of the word is warfare or military service. Its only other usage is found in I Timothy 1:18 where Paul charges Timothy to war a good STRATEIA. This charge is also given to us as followers and warriors of our commander and chief, God Himself. Under God alone are our weapons mighty to pull down strongholds.
But let us break down another word in this passage before closing on the day. In this passage, the word mighty is the word DUNATOS, meaning able, powerful, having extreme power, and influential. Think on that for just a moment. The weapons of our STRATEIA are DUNATOS! What comes to mind for me is an unstoppable force that is able to penetrate anything, deflect anything, and bring fear into the inner parts of the one I am facing down. I recall the scripture that reads it is not by might, nor power, but by God’s Spirit. Apart from God I can do nothing, but holding His given weapons in my hand and fighting next to Him I can do all things, including the demolition of strong holds. What can stand against God’s power? Nothing!
Yet while we have looked at the weapons of our warfare and how they were not physical but spiritual according to II Corinthians 10:4, let us also look at the very next verse to follow which describes another attack of the enemy, and the resolution that God has given to us concerning the attack. Now remember, the weapons of our strateia are dunatos, or as is better known, the weapons of our warfare are mighty and able to pull down strongholds. But what is a stronghold? A stronghold is defined as an area in which we are held in bondage because of a way of thinking. For me concerning my draw toward pornography, the stronghold was in thinking that every woman wanted me, and later on in thinking that I could never break free from it. My mind was trapped in wrong thinking. For years I wanted out of this cycle but could never get past the lies that played over and over in my head. It wasn't until I fully surrendered to God and began reading His word and His promises concerning me that I began to understand really what I was fighting against. I wasn't fighting against the internet or the countless magazines or even Hugh Hefner himself, but I was fighting against the lies in my mind that had twisted a leash around me and were dragging me further and further downward. Perhaps you know the feeling of a stronghold.
But with the understanding that we have been given spiritual weapons, we must also realize that we have been given the ability through Christ to demolish those thinsg that once held us captive. We are given the ability to demolish arguments and pretensions that stand before us and against God. Well now, that is a great and fluffy thought, but what does it mean? In stating that we 'demolish arguments', the Greek refers to us having the skills to cast down or throw down our opponote. I think of a wrestling match - no not those fake ones on television but instead a high school wrestling match or such. Imagine the guy weighing 200 pounds going against the one weighing only 99 pounds. If I was a betting man, I would put my money on the big guy because he has twice as much muscle, strength and power over the little guy. With one move he could overtake the little guy and pin him. That is us. We are the big guy who has the speed, training, and skill to defeat the enemy. The problem is that even though in practice we know of and joke around about our power and skill, we don't use it when the match is actually going on for real. How many of us can talk a talk about beating up the devil only to find ourselves giving into sin? Yet all these arguments and reckonings are supposed to be what we are taking down. We are not supposed to fail, yet we give in and lose many times because we don't even try.
Still, in addition to demolishing arguments, we are also to use our weapons to demolish every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God. Again, do we know what means? It means every item that glorifies itself higher than God needs to be demolished. It could be the sin of porn, or it could a girlfriend, boyfriend, money, food, the list could go on. Anything that is more important to you than God is an idol, and here Paul tells us that these idols must be destroyed. I look at this way. If I am standing face to face with God, and this thing comes and stands between me and God and looks me now face to face, then that thing has its back turned toward God. In essence, that thing has caused me to turn my back on God.
Paul didn't leave us without an answer, though. He told us what we must do. We must take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ. Let's look at these words of command and decipher what this really means. AICHMALOTIZO in the Greek means to enslave the thoughts held within the mind. This is what we are commanded to do. Instead of being slaves to sin we are to make sin our slave. We have been given the task of taking these sins before God so that He may punish the evil one. In His way, He will bring about HUPAKOE, which is the method of bringing someone or something into submission. By casting down the arguments, imaginations, and gods that stand in the way, we find our minds free of the distractions that work to veer us away for God. It is in the fight and victory concerning this submission of mindset that we find ourselves then in the position of freedom from the strongholds that so desire to control us.
God has destined us to be strong disciples of Him, yet too many of us have moved from following God strongly to being strongly held by the enemy. It is time we surrender these thoughts captive to God so that these areas in which we are held in bondage because of our thinking no longer enslave us. It is time we wear the armor of God and combat the enemy, putting him with force and in God's power, back in his place. Are you ready to break the strongholds? Then let us start by taking our thoughts captive. Rise up warriors and retake your place. For far too long we have let the enemy sack our villages, steal from us, and shoot us with the flaming arrows of sin he so strategically has aimed at us. We have forgotten about the promise of God’s weapons and that we are called to take up arms and fight. Put on your armor, soldiers of the Lord Most High, and fight. Dress yourself in His truth, His righteousness and His peace. Cover your mind with God’s helmet and then with sword and shield in hand, move out to take back what the devil has stolen from you. Rise up mighty warrior, and under God’s banner, re-possess the land!